new zealand 2003 - day 9

In the morning, we packed up some snacks and gear and walked over to the ferry terminal to purchase two return tickets to Rangitoto, New Zealand's youngest volcano. Ferries ran in and out, dumping people off and picking more people up. We boarded our ferry with about 20 others and set out for Devonport. Jeremy and I sat on the top deck to get the best look at the harbor and nearby islands. The air temperature was cold and the wind was strong. We bundled up along with the rest of the people there. From Devonport we continued on to Rangitoto Island. Rangitoto rose out of the sea about 600 years ago and the name is short for the Maori name that translates into "the day the blood of Tamatekapua was shed". Alright! The island is administered by the DOC (Department of Conservation) and it is the least modified volcano in the area. This baby rocks!

Once we all spilled out onto the dock, people began their various preparations for the hike to the summit (mine was to run to the loo). The hike begins as a mild, but steady ascent through lichen dotted aa fields interspersed between areas where trees and other plants had established homes. As we neared the summit, the slope increased and the views of the bay got better. The clouds overhead began to thin and diffuse sunlight made the tramp a little warmer. On the last bit of trail before the summit we passed some enormous trees (reportedly 250+ years old). At the top we enjoyed the breeze and admired Auckland from the island. Auckland is a great city, but I still preferred the more rustic scenery of the countryside. When others began to arrive, we packed up and went down to hike around the summit crater which (unlike Ubehebe in Death Valley) was practically a little jungle! On the way back to the dock, we took the lava caves detour. We passed a few lava caves that didn't really go anywhere (a group of French tourists were sort of crowded around the whole thing). Eventually, we followed trail markers to a lava tube that we hiked through. It about 100 meters long and the inside was dark, wet and cold. I clocked my head at one point (where the tube constricts), but it was incredible to pass through.

Upon our return to Auckland, we stopped for a hot meat pie and a sausage roll (things you should try at least once in New Zealand). It began to drizzle again, but we felt refreshed after our hike and enjoyed the walk back to the hotel. After lounging about and repacking our gear, we walked through the university and a park to get to the Aotea Market. I looked for trinkets and souvenirs. I wasn't really in the mood to buy anything though, so we just wandered around and eventually got hungry. Parallel to busy Queen Street were a couple of quieter streets with good cafes. We stopped at one to try some New Zealand pizza. Aaron told us that their pizza has tons of stuff piled on top. He said he was so disappointed when he went to New York and tried our pizza. The pizza was great, but their seafood chowder was even better! Moving on, Jeremy navigated us through the city into a very posh open air shopping center. We had a hankering for something sweet and sat down for sinfully good dessert and bougie caffeine. Ready to burst at the seams, we walked off the treats on some very steep roads and crashed at the hotel.